Manufacturing will change byleaps and bounds over the next 2decades due to advances in artificialintelligence and Internet connectivityrates. Productivity can already bemeasured from distance locations overthe Internet and wireless communicationshave the ability to provideincreased access. Wireless communicationwill eliminate wired operationsonce a backward compatible standardis created and implemented worldwide.
We must begin preparing today inorder to be ready for the future.Manufacturers must begin purchasingupdated machinery with embeddedtechnology and acquiring software forinterfacing machines and the Internet.Educators must return to the basicswith real-world application of acquiredknowledge to prepare people tofunction in the factory of the future.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
People
Highly skilled operators will be critical in the automated factory of the future. People will continue managing production and performing complex maintenance on equipment to allow
peak operation. Employee responsibilities will consist mainly of supervision as opposed to completing manufacturing tasks. Academia must collaborate with manufacturers to prepare students for current and projected technology requirements within industry by emphasizing skills application to produce an adaptive workforce. Preparation requires learning situations that
utilize today’s technology to acquire knowledge and complete application projects resulting in workers prepared to access the factory of the future from remote sites without trepidation.
peak operation. Employee responsibilities will consist mainly of supervision as opposed to completing manufacturing tasks. Academia must collaborate with manufacturers to prepare students for current and projected technology requirements within industry by emphasizing skills application to produce an adaptive workforce. Preparation requires learning situations that
utilize today’s technology to acquire knowledge and complete application projects resulting in workers prepared to access the factory of the future from remote sites without trepidation.
Required Components
Computer hardware and softwareat the remote site can be any computerwith a web browser. Computer hardwareat the controlled machine sitemust be rugged and reliable. Controlactuators, measurement sensors, safetyswitches, and fast communicationequipment will also be required.Software at the controlled machine sitemust have flexible, well-designedcontrolling and communicationcapability.
Benefits
The benefits of artificial intelligencein manufacturing devicescombined with Internet connectivityare emerging on a continual basis.Embedded Internet working productsenable existing CNC to communicateover an Ethernet network providingreal-time manufacturing information.Video over IP technology allows usersto remotely monitor the productionprocess by allowing the computernetwork to function as a video networkallowing real-time pictures to beviewed on any PC. This technologyalso allows rewinding, pausing, andreplaying of video.
Continuous operation, breakdownavoidance, and remote control ofdistant factories are three of the chiefbenefits of remote monitoring with automated reasoning devices on plantfloors and Internet connectivity.
Continuous operation, breakdownavoidance, and remote control ofdistant factories are three of the chiefbenefits of remote monitoring with automated reasoning devices on plantfloors and Internet connectivity.
Today’s Applications
Texaco has four 3-D Visualization Centers and Giselle Smith (1999) reported on the Houston center. Geologists and geophysicists use the facility to analyze seismic data and predict oil well placement more accurately. Facilities like Texaco’s have the potential to dramatically reduce the
number of low or non-producing wells drilled. The 3-D visualization technology allows information to be processed in 1 day instead of 2 weeks dramatically decreasing the time from data collection to projection. Most 3-D visualization centers use Silicon Graphics computers, but there is no industry standard for software.
Peter Burrows (2001) states that Colgate-Palmolive Co. has installed SAP corporate software to allow the company to have a real-time direct connection to cash registers at Wal-Mart Stores and Kmart. The software allows production rates to be modified immediately based on real-time sales monitoring. The company only ships
products the stores are selling.
Unifi Inc. company headquarters is located in Greensboro, NC and all factory equipment in its 22 locations is accessible from headquarters. Customers may access data through the company’s web site.
number of low or non-producing wells drilled. The 3-D visualization technology allows information to be processed in 1 day instead of 2 weeks dramatically decreasing the time from data collection to projection. Most 3-D visualization centers use Silicon Graphics computers, but there is no industry standard for software.
Peter Burrows (2001) states that Colgate-Palmolive Co. has installed SAP corporate software to allow the company to have a real-time direct connection to cash registers at Wal-Mart Stores and Kmart. The software allows production rates to be modified immediately based on real-time sales monitoring. The company only ships
products the stores are selling.
Unifi Inc. company headquarters is located in Greensboro, NC and all factory equipment in its 22 locations is accessible from headquarters. Customers may access data through the company’s web site.
Projection
Web-enabled machines on thefactory floor will control industrialInternet communication in the future.Factories will be refurbished and moreefficient than today’s resulting in asmaller and more effective staffingstandard. The Internet will allow fast,efficient, reliable communicationresulting in increased productivity andsafety. Installation of wireless systemswill create greater flexibility andeliminate episodes of extended downtimerequired for wired systems whentroubleshooting. Wireless applicationswill also allow greater worker mobility.The manager of the future will be ableto access process information at alltimes resulting in the ability to addressdeviations in productions in real-time.
Internet based solutions
Manufacturers are already incorporatingsupport for Internet manufacturing.Solutions range from software fordetermining customer purchasingneeds to monitoring and controllingproduction from remote locations.“The advent of the Internet has foreverchanged the structure of the supplychain … Today, the Internet enablesseveral suppliers to chime in on anorder, allowing them to compete for acontract in cyberspace” (Haren, 2000).Implementation of an e-supply chainrequires full integration of supplycomponents with Internet componentsaccording to Haren (2000). Haren’ssoftware company, ILOG, providessoftware solutions that include webbasedpurchasing and support for theInternet human interface.
The US-Japan Center at VanderbiltUniversity has created a VirtualManufacturing Village (VMV) consistingof researchers and practitionerswho develop manufacturing conceptsin an on-line community. Some of theareas they have focused on are intelligentmanufacturing, environmentallyconscious design and manufacturing,and remote manufacturing systems.
The US-Japan Center at VanderbiltUniversity has created a VirtualManufacturing Village (VMV) consistingof researchers and practitionerswho develop manufacturing conceptsin an on-line community. Some of theareas they have focused on are intelligentmanufacturing, environmentallyconscious design and manufacturing,and remote manufacturing systems.
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